Ideas for Small Space Gardening

by Cindy
(Kitchener Ontario)

Terri,

I also have a tiny plot of land to garden on but there are many ways to increase your land. You can find areas that you can change into growing areas. You might not even have to break concrete by making them raised beds ( natural wood, cedar is more resistant, must not be pressure treated or rail ties etc), living walls, planters where you have concrete but want more plants, flat roof, or slightly sloped ones ( on a shed is great so I hear).Also planting compact plants especially for planters so they aren't stunted and yield less.

I'm going to try to make a living wall this year. The past few years I put several window boxes on a plain fence, and also at the windows.

You can also try growing somethings inside,I'm hoping to add small shelves against the window so I can grow somethings inside again.

When I lived in apartments I had fresh herbs in tiny rectangular boxes ($1 store ones) at the windows. In other places I got a lot of urns & other planters. Some year hopefully a green roof where my flat roof is. google living walls :)

The living wall as I've seem some people do it:
chicken wire or something similar that you can put the plants in and they can grow through it, should be good with climbing plants, with something as soil & blockers so the soil doesn't fall out weed blocker or coir might do the job, might need to make a frame. I seen one at the green show in Toronto. I'm thinking that watering might be the most challenging. Attach or have it on a "stand" & slightly away from the wall sloped? I think.

These living walls can also be inside with water supplied/circulating in the system, there are a few places in our area as air cleaners "bio filters" they are awesome :)http://www.environment.uwaterloo.ca/faculty/green/details.html

Have yet to get into canning but learning about it as we want to be more self sufficient and being more green. Eating things we grow from the garden (if i can get something edible to grow ,lol...)is very rewarding, I'm sure canning will also :)